Mr. Stephen Lane, new math teacher, really likes teaching math, he also enjoys solving Rubik’s cubes. His collection includes many shapes, including a triangulated icosahedron, aka the Void Tuttminx, and his favorite: the Square-1. 

The new Geometry and Algebra 1 teacher said there was one simple reason he enjoys teaching. “Math is very problem solving heavy,” he said. “There is this cool moment that you see with kids when they go from not understanding something to when it ‘clicks.’ Just seeing that moment is really cool.” 

Mr. Lane, 28, attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, where he earned his degree in Mathematics. Before he came to SMHS, he worked and ran a Mathnasium learning center. “This made me fall in love with teaching and made me want to become a teacher,” he said. He went back to school and earned his teaching credential at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona. 

To be successful in math, Mr. Lane said you need to understand how you get to the answer. “A lot of people are very focused on the answers for things,” he said. “The answer to problems is not necessarily why we are doing math, it’s more about how you get there. Really understanding why what you’re doing works in math will help you go further.” 

Mr. Lane appreciates that he ended up with a career where he gets to do what he really enjoys. 

His advice to SMHS students? “If there is something that you enjoy, there is probably a job you can do that is related to that,” Lane said.